Hi everyone, it's Cole here to talk a little bit about campus organizations and how they can benefit student. Today we turn the spotlight over to Mortar Board, which have had the pleasure of being President of this year.

What is Mortar Board?

Mortar Board is a national honor society recognizing college seniors for their exemplary scholarship, leadership and service. Mortar Board was founded on February 15, 1918 with chapters at four institutions: Cornell University, The University of Michigan, The Ohio State University and Swarthmore College. Since then Mortar Board has taken leadership as a national union of senior honor societies, expanding to 231 chapters in 46 states. Mortar Board seeks to emphasize the advancement of the status of women, to support the ideals of the college or university, to advance a spirit of scholarship, to recognize and encourage leadership, to provide service, and to establish the opportunity for a meaningful exchange of ideas as individuals and as a group.

So in a nutshell, Mortarboard is a national organization for college seniors that have sought high academic achievement and to be leaders at the colleges they attend.

How does Mortar Board Impact MC?

Members of the 2015-2016 Mortar Board of Mississippi College

While the actual mechanics of each chapter is different across the nation, the purpose for us all is to serve the campus and promote scholarship. For Mississippi College's chapter of Mortar Board, we have worked to do two to three events during the semester that push that agenda.

Some of the events we have helped sponsor include a Last Lecture series. Last Lectures are times for a professor who has taken extra steps to invest in their students to have a chance to lecture on any topic he or she would like to give.

Dr. Christopher Weeks speaking on the power of stories at Mortar Boards Fall 2015 Last Lecture

We also have the pleasure of hosting Mississippi College Staff and Faculty for an annual event called Smorgasboard. We celebrate the dedication the our professors and administrators put into MC and making it superb for us all by collecting home grown recipes from our members and cooking those meals to serve them.

Among these events above we have also taken an active role in serving with the campus. Mortar Board has collected toys for Operation Christmas Child, and served refreshments at our annual Junior High and High School Student Government Leadership Summit.

How do you get involved with Mortar Board?

Great question. Mortar Board does have some requirements. Students are expected to have a 3.5 gpa and have a track record of being involved in leadership on campus to be considered for membership. In the spring though, all those students on campus that fit those requirements will receive an email asking them to apply. From that point, faculty and members will go through a selection process to choose the next year's Mortar Board.

I hope this has shed some light on one of the brightest organizations offered here on Mississippi College's campus. Continue to strive for excellence, until next time.